Soldier (A Bucky Barnes Fanfiction)

Chapter 5

|Tuesday, July 4, 1939|

This was the first year that Adeline wasn't going to celebrate Steve's birthday with him. She had sent him a package a week ago, hoping that it would get home in time. Adeline was just about ready to tear the hair out of her head. She was constantly stuck behind a desk, writing up reports, schedules, reading letters then later responding to those same letters and the typewriter was never working so she would have to go find someone to fix it for her. She was just about the only woman who had a job of authority (granted that authority she had was limited) and many men looked down on her with looks of disapproval.

"Mr. President," Adeline said as she spotted him walking through the hallways. Her heels clicked on the marble floor to keep up. "Your itinerary for today."

"Thank you, Miss Adams," he said, accepting the handwritten schedule for the Fourth of July day. "Busy day today."

"Yes, sir," Adeline said. "If you want me to move anything, I can arrange that."

"No, no, this is perfect," he said.

"Mr. President, there is a line from France," a man in a suit said. "It's urgent."

"How urgent?" Roosevelt asked.

"Brink of war urgent," the man said quietly.

"I will leave you," Adeline said. "Don't forget about the cabinet meeting at ten." The two men walked off, leaving Adeline in the grand hallway by herself. She made her way back to her desk. She usually missed breakfast these days, there was always so much to do.

"Miss Adams, here are your daily mailings," a maid said, setting a pile of letters on the desk.

"Thank you," Adeline said.

"You look ghostly pale, miss, did you have something to eat this morning?" The maid asked.

"No, but I'm fine, really," Adeline said with a smile.

"Oh, nonsense, what would you like?" She asked. "We have plenty of food. How about some fruit and a muffin?"

"Thank you," Adeline said with a grateful smile.

Soon it was ten and Adeline was walking briskly next to the president, holding papers close to her chest. The room went quiet upon their arrival. The cabinet was full of men in high authority, many having military pins and stripes while others wore their expensive suits with pride. Adeline was sure that the silence was not the cause of President Roosevelt's presence but because of her's.

"Miss, I am going to have to ask you to step outside, these matters are for authorized personnel only," one of the men said, gesturing to the door.

"Excuse me, sir, but I have just as much of a right to be here as you," Adeline said, not having any patience for the egocentric man. "I am President Roosevelt's personal assistant and advisor so, I suggest you get your hands off me before I take them off for you." The man turned slightly pale at Adeline's aggression and stepped back. She sat to the right of the president and organized all of her papers on the table.

"My apologies for my harsh words, Mr. President," Adeline mumbled, earning a slight smile. The meeting consisted of Adeline taking notes and making sure she had all the necessary papers and documents.

"As you can see, Mr. President, there is nothing to worry about in Europe," the man standing at the front of the long table said. Many men mumbled in agreement, but Adeline held her tongue.

"No one takes Hitler seriously, not even Germany. He's a puppet if you ask me," another said.

"Shouldn't that make him dangerous?" Adeline asked, looking around at each man who had a surprised look on their faces.